About Crofton Capital

Crofton is a neighborhood southeast of London in England and the birthplace of Phil Ivey, the founder of Crofton Capital.“Croft” is a historic term given to an area of arable land in Britain that is nurtured by a crofter for food production. Today, Crofton Capital enjoys an association of its name with the use of resources to generate production and growth in the modern world.

Phil Ivey, Managing DirectorSince founding Crofton Capital in late 2009, Phil Ivey has led each of the firm's acquisitions in a role that has included substantial time working directly with management teams to help support company growth. As a mergers and acquisitions advisor for 15 years prior to establishing Crofton Capital – most recently as Managing Director with Harris Williams & Co. (see note below) – Phil advised middle market clients in a range of sectors including industrial manufacturing, business services, distribution, technology, consumer products, and financial services. As an M&A practitioner, he worked extensively alongside owner-operators of closely-held businesses, as well as private equity groups and executive teams of large corporations that were selling divisions. In all these assignments, Phil enjoyed valuable insights into the philosophy and expertise of senior management teams across the gamut of business environments.

Prior to joining Harris Williams & Co. and helping to establish its Boston office in 2002, Phil was a Principal in the investment banking group of Tucker Anthony Sutro (now RBC Capital Markets). His further experience includes KPMG Consulting (now BearingPoint, Inc.), where he was a consultant working with companies on operational and financial management improvements, and the institutional equities group of UBS Securities in London, England.

Phil earned an M.B.A. with highest honors from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in 1994. More recently, he was also selected as one of Boston Business Journal's annual “40 Under 40” award winners.

After growing up in England, where he earned a B.S. from the University of Bristol in 1988, Phil has lived in the U.S. since 1989, all but two of those years in the Boston area where he now lives with his wife and three children.

Note: Among middle mark﻿et M&A advisory firms focused on selling U.S. companies with under one billion dollars in deal value, Harris Williams & Co. enjoys an unparalleled reputation and is highly respected for its approach, results, and integr﻿ity.

Mark Abrahams, Advisory BoardMr. Abrahams is the President and CEO of DelStar Technologies, Inc., a manufacturer of highly engineered thermoplastic nonwoven netting utilized in filtration, healthcare and industrial applications. While overseeing DelStar's development into an industry leader, Mr. Abrahams has launched operations in China, completed strategic acquisitions, and pushed technological innovation. Prior to DelStar, Mr. Abrahams had been Vice President and General Manager of a division of Applied Extrusion Technologies, Inc. since 1993 where he orchestrated a merger with Nalle Plastics to form DelStar in 2001. Previously, Mr. Abrahams was President of Cybex and COO of Cambridge Medical Instruments, and he held various positions with American Hospital Supply Company from 1973 to 1988.

Frank O'Connell, Advisory BoardMr. O’Connell has extensive operating experience running and repositioning companies, as well as leading turnaround initiatives. He is known for strategic thinking, brand building and breakthrough marketing. He currently sits on the board of public company TreeHouse Foods Inc. and several private companies. Mr. O’Connell is a Senior Advisor to The Parthenon Group, a strategy consulting firm, where he served as senior partner from 2004 to 2012 and specialized in consumer-branded goods and retail. From 2000 to 2002, he served as President and CEO of Indian Motorcycle Corporation, a storied motorcycle brand, and as Chairman through 2004. From 1996 to 2000, he served as Chairman, President and CEO of Gibson Greetings, Inc., a social expressions company. From 1991 to 1995, Mr. O’Connell served as President and COO of Skybox International, a trading card and collectibles company. He previously served as President of Reebok Brands, North America from 1998 to 2000 during the Pump era, President of HBO Video, and SVP of Mattel’s Electronics Division.Frank Ricchio, Advisory BoardMr. Ricchio is a highly experienced and respected executive in the foodservice equipment industry. As President and CEO of Star Manufacturing International, Inc. since 1999, Mr. Ricchio guided the company to leadership in a broad range of foodservice equipment categories before overseeing the sale of the company to Middleby Corporation in January 2008. Prior to joining Star Manufacturing in 1982 and serving in a number of sales and marketing roles, Mr. Ricchio started his career with Alco Foodservice Company and Prince Castle, Inc. As a senior executive with Middleby, Frank Ricchio added the Wells, Bloomfield, Nu-Vu and Toastmaster lines to his previous role of overseeing the Star, Holman and Lang brands, and he strengthened the competitive position and profitability of this combined group of brands. Mr. Ricchio retired in 2010 after 28 years of service with Star/Middleby.

Len Sanders, Advisory BoardMr. Sanders' has over 40 years experience as an innovative consumer products executive. From 1982 to 2005, Mr. Sanders was President and Chief Executive Officer of Holiday Group, Inc., during which time he grew the company to become Canada's largest supplier of luggage and bags. He remained with the Company until his retirement in 2008, and maintained subsequent Board involvement. He began at Holiday group in 1961, and during his tenure he oversaw all aspects of the business including manufacturing, importing, sales and distribution, and marketing. In particular, he was the architect of the company's strategy to diversify into business and casual bags, to optimize outsourcing, and to license popular brands. Mr. Sanders has also served as Chairman of Travelpro International, Inc., a distinctive supplier of luggage in North America and overseas.

Ted Waitman, Advisory BoardMr. Waitman is the President and Chief Executive Officer of CPM, the world's leading process design and equipment provider for the oilseed, animal feed, biofuel, and cereal industries. In leading CPM to becoming the industry's preeminent supplier, Mr. Waitman has overseen strong growth in the company's revenue and profitability while guiding the company though a number of significant acquisitions and international expansion efforts, while navigating corporate and private equity ownership changes. Mr. Waitman previously had served in a variety of roles since joining CPM in 1978, including Vice President and General Manager of CPM, Manufacturing Manager of worldwide operations, Plant Manager of the Crawfordsville facility, and General Manager for the Roskamp Champion division.